"The money thing is ridiculous. I'd have to be a really sick and twisted person to go through what I went through for money - money that I obviously haven't got. It's not like I'm walking around in Louis Vuitton. I'm not materialistic. I find it quite fun not to have money."

Ekaterina also refuses to feel guilty for the end of Ronnie's 23-year marriage to his wife Jo, and says her family have also been affected by the publicity surrounding their controversial romance.

She added: "I don't think I deserve to feel bad. Obviously he was married, and I have my own views about that, but I have enough respect for his family not to talk about them. But it wasn't just for me that he left.

"My family have been hurt too. People tell my mum her daughter is an alcoholic. My friends have been blackmailed and offered money."

Ekaterina was confident their relationship would remain strong when Ronnie entered rehab to deal with his drinking last year, despite rumours Jo had visited him in a bid to save their marriage.

She told Britain's Grazia magazine: "Something in the back of my head told me that it would work out."